<if i believed that this very brief span of time in which i exist on earth is all there is to LIFE then as the apostle Paul says, i would be" the most miserable of men.... why not then just eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die (paraphrased).> That would be a very egocentric approach to life. I seem to be far from the most miserable of people, including swarms of religious people, and do not just eat, drink and be merry because my time is brief. I have very long horizons, extending far beyond my own consciousness and beyond that of humans.

Wouldn't you think "Heck, this is all the time I have, I'd better make it count. If I had all of eternity to mess around, there would be no hurry to get on and do good works." Wasting the little time merely eating, drinking and being merry would be somewhat pointless. If you take time to contribute to creating Utopia, future generations can also enjoy their temporal existence while enjoying the pursuit of the divine. It seems Paul had it back to front.

If Christians and other religious people were able to take a broader point of view than their own existence, they would see that there is more to life than the continuation of their own consciousness through silly ideas of rebirth or being Raptured into eternal life. In fact, I find I'm happier than the average tortured superstitious person who struggles to maintain their belief in supernatural things. I only have to cope with what's real. They have to cope with not just what's real, but all the imaginary things too.

Okay, Easter is over. Back to our regular programme - the pursuit of the money changers, gold and The Anglos.